Rain rain rain - and Salzburg

At this point the rain has been for so many days and so heavy that there are warnings out.  It is ruining the Tourist industry in this part of Germany.   This was the part we were to do our mountain walks and chairlift rides and outdoorsy kinds of things.  

Actually I am ready to settle in and rest.   I'd love to know how many stairs I have climbed this trip.   Yesterday in Salzburg we unexpectedly did several hundred more.  Read n for that !

We are now couch surfing in what is part time a B and B dedicated to health, yoga,   it has a flotation tank with 0 gravity, a sauna.   the owner gives workshops and courses in meditation, yoga, and related subjects.

Unfortunately he was to be at an African Festival in Wortzburg this weekend and his friend was to let us in.  We are in indeed but learned the entire festival except the major indoor concerts was rained out.  This is a tough time in Germany weather wise.

           On To Salzburg

We decided to rise very early yesterday morning (5:30 am yawn!) to get one of the coveted parking places in the center of the city.   It was a good decision as it was a Saturday and in spite of the rain the city was full. We lucked out with a few hours to explore before the rain started again in earnest.

These three pictures show the low hanging clouds as we left Ehrwald Austria

Pictures along the way

Germany seems to opt for rotaries rather then cross streets with traffic lights

The older farms are often connected to the houses so the farmer doesn't have to go outdoors in bad weather.

The famous 120 speed limit on the Autobahn.  At least it is KPH but still 90 MPH and many do higher..Added later - I just found out  from our friends here that when you see the 120 with a red line through it it means there is NO speed limit which explains the extremely high speeds some are traveling - they said the car makers here make the cars to do those speeds and the owners want to drive that way so it is no limit on many sections of the Autobahn.

Our trip to Salzburg took us back through Germany and then a reentry to Austria.  The Autobahn in Austria is a toll road.  Tourists purchase a sticker at a gas station which is good for 10 days.   Residents have their own stickers so there are no toll booths.

Welcome back to Austria

Lest you think it is all old world here

Pollution near Salzburg

I love the tunnels here.  they seem so spacious

Maria with her suitcase :) - actually you see a lot of habits in southern Germany and Austria. Religious symbols are everywhere. Specifically Catholic religious symbols.  We ate dinner today in a popular local German restaurant and the LARGE crucifix was on the wall not far from the cigarette machine.

This and following are pictures of Salzburg old town

Actually a local street

The central huge parking garage is actually in a hollowed out mountain.  This is one exit

Another local street .  It is 2 way and that is a bus emerging.  The mountain above which gets much higher is the one the parking garage is carved form

The fortress can be seen from all over town - seen in The Sound of Music

Picture I took of direction to our car!  I was afraid we wouldn't find it. There were 8 levels holding just under 2000 cars

Pedestrian walking street.  Note the old shop signs

Now for the kitsch!

Why buy just one when you can get Mozart in all sizes

Mozart's birth house

Mozart in chocolate

Carved figures

Hmmm - is it a duck with a Mozart wig?

Fortress is reached by this cog train

View from the first level of the fortress, green dome is the Cathedral

River is the Salz (Salt)  Salzburg is named for the salt mines that enriched it when salt was first found and before easier sources existed

Another level up

The place is HUGE. Taken from near one end to the other

Different views from the top

Well not actually the top yet!

This room features the 17 archbishops who build the fortress in consecutive reigns

They don't tell you that the path through the Fortress includes stairs, many stairs!

At this level you could imagine you were at ground level if you didn't look over the side.  It is the size of a village

This is where the up and down trams pass.  I was in the front coming down when I took this

Different groups sing in the squares throughout the day.  This one took me pretty much by surprise.  They were singing opera songs but the uniform was pretty off putting for me

This is called "the Empty Pieta"

The real von Trappe family.

Mozart statue in Mozart Platz

Back down with the Fortress above

Almost as soon a we were down the rain started heavily again so we got on the "Hop on hop off" bus and rode it two complete circuts.

I liked these out of town places

The exterior of the von Trappe family home in The Sound of Music.  A different site was used for the interior

This is the statue Maria and the children danced around singing Do Re Me.

The heavy rain continued as we left Salzburg for our next couch surfing adventure.  It is actually an inn high above Bad Reisenburg.  It is actually more of a retreat with a meditation room, a sauna,   and a float tank in which one can stay for 30 min or an hour at 0 gravity.

The rain has continued and now there is serious flooding.  The Autobahn from here to Munich is closed because of flooding.   I hope we can drive back Tue for our Wed flight home but there are more serious issues.  Dams threatening to break.  

We drove into town this afternoon for a wonderful German dinner at a local favorite restaurant.   We crossed one brook that has almost reached the small wooden bridge we need to drive over.

In the meantime this is a good place to be stranded.  The owner is stranded in Munich.  The friend who let us in will be away tonight. 

A wonderful Nigerian man who fled to Germany 18 years ago told us his harrowing story and then of his struggle with neo nazi's here and being beaten.

So expecting a quiet night and day tomorrow. 

I doubt many of you have read this far but if you have, you see that I am mostly putting up pictures with little comment.   I have been doing these very late at night and pretty tired so just getting it out there.   Hope you enjoy skimming the pix anyway.